A. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to the art of Zero Turn Radius vehicles and more specifically to Zero Turn Radius mowers incorporating mechanical steering systems.
B. Description of the Related Art
Zero Turn Radius (ZTR) vehicles including mowers work well for their intended purpose. One advantage of ZTR vehicles is that they are capable of making very tight (zero radius) turns. One disadvantage of most ZTR vehicles is that their operation is not intuitive for most operators because steering of the vehicles is accomplished by steering levers, rather than a steering wheel. Recently, steering wheels have been incorporated onto ZTR vehicles. However, known ZTR vehicles using a steering wheel steer the vehicle differently in the forward direction of travel than in reverse. That is to say, that with the steering wheel steered to turn the vehicle right, and upon depressing the accelerator, the vehicle will make a forward right turn. But, when the accelerator is depressed to drive the vehicle in reverse, the vehicle makes a rearward left turn, rather than a rearward right turn. What is needed is a reliable mechanical ZTR steering system that steers the vehicle consistently in the direction that the steering wheel is turned in forward as well as the reverse directions.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention with reference being made to the accompanying drawings.